Hiya I really need some advice on the container sizes for some mini patio treers I've just bought. The pear tree is called Harvest Green, I also have a mini apple (forgot it's name) and a Stella cherry tree. The apple and pear will grow two metres wide and high after five years and the cherrry will grow three metres wide and high.

They're currently in a pot that is 10" wide and 8" high. I was origianlly going to plant them in the biggest container I could get but read online yesterday that they should just be potted on into bigger pots untill finally planting them into their final with minumim size being 45cm.

The containers I have spare at the mo are one that's 13" wide by 11" high and one that's 15" wide and 13" high. When I messured the widths I messured the inside so they're more likey 14" and 16" wide containers.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

jayne_80 wrote:
Hiya I really need some advice on the container sizes for some mini
patio treers I've just bought. The pear tree is called Harvest Green,
I also have a mini apple (forgot it's name) and a Stella cherry tree.
The apple and pear will grow two metres wide and high after five
years and the cherrry will grow three metres wide and high.

They're currently in a pot that is 10" wide and 8" high. I was
origianlly going to plant them in the biggest container I could get
but read online yesterday that they should just be potted on into
bigger pots untill finally planting them into their final with
minumim size being 45cm.


This is what I have always done and my trees in tubs are all doing fine. If
somebody can explain what the 'pot them up one size' approach is supposed to
do and _why_ it is better than all at once I am all ears.

David

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
jayne_80 wrote:
Hiya I really need some advice on the container sizes for some mini
patio treers I've just bought. The pear tree is called Harvest Green,
I also have a mini apple (forgot it's name) and a Stella cherry tree.
The apple and pear will grow two metres wide and high after five
years and the cherrry will grow three metres wide and high.

They're currently in a pot that is 10" wide and 8" high. I was
origianlly going to plant them in the biggest container I could get
but read online yesterday that they should just be potted on into
bigger pots untill finally planting them into their final with
minumim size being 45cm.


This is what I have always done and my trees in tubs are all doing fine.
If somebody can explain what the 'pot them up one size' approach is
supposed to do and _why_ it is better than all at once I am all ears.

David

I was once told, prior to the internet, that the idea of "patio trees" was
to keep them small mainly for decorative purposes therefore keeping them in
as small a pot that would sustain them would limit the root growth and in
turn limit the upper growth.

When you are told something when your young by a person who looks like they
know what they are doing then that seems to stick.

If I want a fruit bearing tree I still pot it into as large a pot as I can
as soon as I can.

Mike

David Hare-Scott wrote:
....
This is what I have always done and my trees in tubs are all doing fine. If
somebody can explain what the 'pot them up one size' approach is supposed to
do and _why_ it is better than all at once I am all ears.

i only have rumor and speculation.
it's been ages since i've done potted trees
other than bonsai.

but speculate is what noodles can do:...

any time you repot the tree you can root
prune away dead stuff and reshape the root
system to increase root surface area, making
a more efficient use of the space than what
a tree might do otherwise. this should give
a deeper and more resistant to drought root
ball and perhaps a better anchor against wind
damage. if it falls over you want the whole
thing to go and not the tree being ripped off
the surface.

do any of these make sense to you?


songbird

songbird wrote:
David Hare-Scott wrote:
...
This is what I have always done and my trees in tubs are all doing
fine. If somebody can explain what the 'pot them up one size'
approach is supposed to do and _why_ it is better than all at once I
am all ears.

i only have rumor and speculation.
it's been ages since i've done potted trees
other than bonsai.

but speculate is what noodles can do:...

any time you repot the tree you can root
prune away dead stuff and reshape the root
system to increase root surface area, making
a more efficient use of the space than what
a tree might do otherwise. this should give
a deeper and more resistant to drought root
ball and perhaps a better anchor against wind
damage. if it falls over you want the whole
thing to go and not the tree being ripped off
the surface.

do any of these make sense to you?


songbird

It does make sense but making sense is not sufficient. It's a nice story,
it may even be true. I am not arguing but I could also write:

If you plant in a big tub the roots spread out making
a more efficient use of the space than what
a tree might do otherwise. this should give
a deeper and more resistant to drought root
ball and perhaps a better anchor against wind
damage. if it falls over you want the whole
thing to go and not the tree being ripped off
the surface.

How do we determine which story is right or if in fact it matters one way or
the other?

D

Thanks for your replys. it tooks me a while to reply as I use local libary for intenret access.

I was hoping to buy a 60cm wide tub from wilkinosns but unfortaunaltly they don't sell them anymore and can't afford to buy any that size from my local garden centres.

I think what I'll do it put it into the 40cm wide one and then buy a 60cm wide one when it needs repotting. Probably better this way anways as I'm in rented accomodation and am planning to move this year.

One thing I'm unsure of is the soil. It said on lable to use John innes no3. I went to wilkinsons and they only stock the Westland john innes no3 but it looks nothing like the compost they're in now. I was thinking because the trees are allready in 7.5 litre pots that I'd need similar compost?

My local garden cener stocks J Auther Bower john innies no3. Do you think that will be better than the Westlands?